Amanda McMullen is a singer and music teacher from Charlotte, North Carolina.  She stumbled across a blog post of mine last year, emailed me, and we started working together right away and while we no longer have a working relationship, we became fast friends and stayed in touch ever since!

I have so much respect for this girl and she’s an amazing human.  While she talks about learning from me, I learned even more from working with her.  

Not only that, but working with Amanda has been such an incredible reminder about the power of the Internet and being able to connect with amazing women around the world that I would never have otherwise had the pleasure of getting to know.

You get a front row seat to listen in as Amanda and I talk through the mindset issues around food she has experienced in the past and how things have changed, her struggle to avoid eating more cookies than intended (can anyone relate?!) and how she has learned to listen to the signals her body is giving her about what’s working and what isn’t.  

I asked Amanda to bring any issues or struggles she was experiencing in regards to nutrition and mindset to the podcast episode, and I didn’t want her to tell me the issues until we were recording so that I could address it in real time with her.  You’ll hear how I coach Amanda through lingering cravings that she has with particular foods and the surprising recommendation I have for her.

Some of the topics we cover: 

• Figuring out whether a vegetarian or meat-eating diet was the right way to go
• Getting curious about the underlying causes behind digestive issues
• Why Amanda decided to try the Whole30 diet recently and what she’s learned from doing an elimination diet
• The impact of stress on your health and how it can manifest in surprising ways
• Giving the tools to help you figure out what works for your body so that you can take responsibility and own your choices
• Ditch your scale, and how as a female your weight will naturally fluctuate throughout the day
• Working with your menstrual cycle rather than against it
• Dealing with sugar cravings and food sensitivities
• Not beating yourself up for eating foods that aren’t “perfect”
• Getting analytical about WHY you’re having massive cravings: paying attention to what’s working for you and what isn’t.
• Questioning long-held beliefs around fitness and nutrition so you can figure out the best plan for your body more objectively

Amanda finds herself thinking about food LESS.  She found that once she wasn’t so stressed about food and could figure out what’s was working and what wasn’t, the way you eat will come more naturally.  Ultimately it’s a practice and not something that comes overnight, but we’re always going to have to have a relationship with food, it’s not going to go away anytime soon.  Why not take a little extra time to figure out what works for your unique body?  

One of the most important takeaways from the episode is to show yourself some love, relax into the process of learning about what works for your body and be more accepting of yourself as an imperfect human.  This is why I always present the argument that meal plans do not work, and I encourage

It’s All About Poop

Yep, that’s right.  Amanda and I met when she first emailed me about a blog post I wrote all about poop, ha!  That turned into signing up for one of my group programs, to 1:1 client, and we have remained friends ever since.  I was so thrilled Amanda agreed to be on the podcast, because her story really highlights the kind of change that can happen when you’re willing and open to make some shifts in your lifestyle.

Amanda sums up the interview perfectly: “It’s just so much more than the food you’re putting on your plate every day.”

I can’t wait for you to get to know Amanda!  She’s an absolute sweetheart and I was honoured she agreed to be on the podcast to chat with me about her personal story.

Listen to this episode to get inspired to learn how you can change your outlook around food so that you can stop stressing, enjoy what you eat, and love how you feel inside and out, even while leading a busy lifestyle.  

 

Blog Post: Digestion Part 2, What Is Your Poop Trying to Tell You? 

Join the party!  Did you know about the Room to Grow Podcast Facebook group?  It’s the community I’ve created for like-minded women who want to grow and learn from each other, and we even have a bi-monthly book club.  I pop in daily with strategies, tips, trainings and sometimes even bring guests live into the group.  See you in there!